Wednesday, April 30, 2008

The Wigshop continues our running commentary on First Friday, bringing you the brilliant insight that you've come to expect from us.

Wigshop First Friday Tip 'O the Month:

Attire!First Fridays are nominally about art, but we all know why people come: To be seen by other people. Art means artists will be present, with their carefully chosen bohemian garb. Don't be fooled- that disheveled ensemble took all month to get together. The least you can do is dress for the occasion.

Cold Weather is over, so no more thrift store jackets and bright colored scarves. That can only mean one thing: t shirts! Picking out the right t-shirt is the holy grail of FF attire. Arty? Ironic? Vintage? Beware: the FF crowd can sense a fake Old Navy vintage shirt from a block away. Walk into a gallery with one those bad boys and kiss your art cred goodbye.The ideal t shirt will be one-of-a-kind, tissue-thin, and form-fitting. T shirts with actual art on them are a plus, or go one further with a t shirt featuring a band the bourgeoisie haven't heard of yet. It's also hard to go wrong with black. With matching black jeans and hair, you're sure to get into a conversation with one the artists themselves discussing Postmodern Philosophy as it Relates to Hindu Vedas in no time! Remember, First Friday is all about being seen. Spend at least a few hours in front of the mirror tonight getting ready. You know all the artists are.

Bonus:Steven Lareau is a digital artist who will be showing his art at this week's First Friday. Looking around for info on the web about the rest of Friday's showings, he found some out of date gallery sites and... mostly nothing. First Friday has been built up on word of mouth, but for the average person who isn't in the art scene it's hard to find out what's going on. Even for someone who has gone for years, with so many galleries and businesses participating some kind of guide/preview is definitely needed.So Mr. Lareau has set up a central website, a clearing house for info on each month's First Friday. I'm glad that someone has taken an interest in helping First Friday put it's best foot forward on the internets. Hopefully through his efforts more Knoxvillians will venture downtown and see some good art.

9 comments:

nice. also, don't forget the vintage western-style shirt. i try to throw one of those into the mix every once in a while, or when i feel that EVERYBODY will be wearing a t-shirt anyway. if you can't stand out, what identity do you have?

the funny thing is that FF actually has its various levels of art-appreciating culture that shows up. in addition to all our hipster friends, we also have the real hippies (scary, they actually live in communes and don't bathe! avoid eye contact) and the middle-aged, well-dressed pseudo snobs (what?! knoxville has an established art culture? yes.)

Oh boy! I cannot wait! I'm all about the presupposed dirtiness that is The Hipster!

Also, if anyone is wanting a little insurance policy for their FF garb, I suggest checking out this site http://facehunter.blogspot.com/ - he's a photographer that lives in London and shoots people on the street with great personal style.

Oh, also! I was talking to someone recently about my moving to Knoxville, and I was saying how it's a really cool city and that especially the Downtown has a great culture that is continuing to grow, and they mentioned that they had heard that Knoxville is lauded to be another Austin, TX.

Has anyone else heard this? Austin has an unbelievable culture (SXSW), and any comparison to such a diverse city is surely a step in the right direction for our little hamlet.

knoxshows.com maintains a current list of First Friday shows, as does Denise Sanabria-Stewart (myspace.com/knoxvillartblog). As to who will have the best wine and food, no one beats the meatballs at 3 Flights Up.

knoxville stuff:

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